VisitGreenvilleSC program creates tourism ambassadors for Greenville
Locals can make a lasting impression on those visiting a travel destination.
Greenville welcomes around 7 million tourists every year. Often, the only people visitors will interact with are frontline hospitality workers such as hotel desk attendants and restaurant workers.
A new program offered by VisitGreenvilleSC helps turn locals into ambassadors for Greenville. The Certified Tourism Ambassador Program is an industry-recognized accreditation through the Tourism Ambassador Institute.
VisitGreenvilleSC launched the certification program at the end of 2023. Greenville is the only community in the Southeast that has started a Certified Tourism Ambassador Program. The program is open to those involved in the tourism industry or who interact with locals and visitors.
Heath Dillard, president and CEO of VisitGreenvilleSC, said the program aims to educate ambassadors on Greenville’s brand to help with the visitor experience and impact the area’s tourism industry.
“The brand is the feeling and the experience that people have when they visit here, when they live here,” Dillard said. “We want to make sure that experience matches what we’re communicating.”
Creating tourism ambassadors
More than 160 community members have completed the CTA program since it launched in Greenville. Through the program, participants learn about the area’s history and culture along with how to find local resources and the importance of the tourism industry.
Dillard said the training allows them to point visitors in the right direction while also helping them discover new activities that could add to their overall experience. This could include offering restaurant recommendations or informing tourists on activities and upcoming events.
In 2022, visitors spent an estimated $1.5 billion at hotels, restaurants and businesses in Greenville.
“By giving people more options and allowing them to learn more things to do than they might have known (about) before they arrived, it inevitably has a positive economic impact as well,” Dillard said. “I would say that is an unintended byproduct.”
Laura Mazzola, “a dreamweaver” with Table 301, participated in the program’s first inaugural class. So far, the local restaurant group has had 36 employees complete the program with 10 more signed up for upcoming sessions. Each ambassador receives a gold star pin to represent their certification.
“One day I was wearing this pin and someone goes ‘What’s that pin?’ I was able to tell them about it,” Mazzola said. “They were new to the area, so I was able to give them information. I think they felt very confident and comfortable taking the information I was giving them.”
Networking opportunities
To earn the certification, participants must complete the required reading, attend a half-day classroom session and take an open-book exam. The classroom session brings together a cross-section of people within the hospitality and tourism industry to share their experiences. Classes are held monthly and taught by VisitGreenvilleSC staff.
Joe Hindman, a CTA and founder of Modal, a boutique hostel in Greenville, felt the most valuable part was learning from the 20 to 30 other industry professionals completing the program. He was also a part of the program’s inaugural class.
“I learned about their businesses,” Hindman said. “I learned about what they value versus what I value as a citizen in our community. There was a lot of diversity in the mix.”
The CTAs are given opportunities to come back together and engage in additional networking opportunities. Michelle Guevara, VisitGreenvilleSC director of destination experiences, said they also do regular communications to highlight new things that are going on in the community.
“It’s really creating this strong network within the hospitality and tourism industry,” Guevara said.
The enrollment fee for VisitGreenvilleSC’s ambassador program is $25 per person. For more information on the program, visit visitgreenvillesc.com/cta.